SAN JOSE — In the last three months, Mayor Sam Liccardo and several council members reported that they have solicited nearly $1 million from Silicon Valley’s most prominent developers, wealthy landowners and powerful business leaders — many of whom have business before the council — for their political causes and favored candidates.

As part of San Jose’s stringent transparency rules, which go a step beyond state reporting requirements, the city’s elected officials must report every three months any money they’ve raised for everything from city-sponsored events such as flag-raising ceremonies to political candidates and causes. There’s nothing unusual about politicians seeking contributions, and those reported in the latest filings appear to meet local laws.

But with many of those cash donors having significant development projects or other business before the City Council, a political watchdog and city councilman questioned the potential for contributions to influence council votes.

“The phrase this brings to mind is pay to play,” said Paul S. Ryan, vice president of policy and litigation at Common Cause, a government watchdog group based in Washington D.C. “Big businesses are not charities. They don’t make campaign contributions out of the goodness of their hearts. They typically view big campaign contributions as investments.”

The mayor said he’s not influenced by campaign contributions — no matter how sizable — and has remained consistent in his positions on various projects.

“I have a substantial track record of disappointing people who believe a contribution will get a result at City Hall,” Liccardo said.

Liccardo has raised the biggest chunk in three months: $924,450. Of that, $804,450 is in support of Measure F, a November city ballot initiative that enacts a pension settlement with labor unions, and $120,000 was for Measure B, a countywide half-cent sales tax to fund transportation projects.

Liccardo’s predecessor, former Mayor Chuck Reed, also personally solicited money for his 2012 pension reform measure, but it’s unclear how much. His fundraising disclosures only show he personally raised $75,000 for a homeless nonprofit and to support Christmas in the Park.

Councilmen Raul Peralez and Donald Rocha each solicited roughly $20,000 to support various ballot measures and City Council candidates. Peralez asked for cash for Measure F and Measure A, the county’s $950 million affordable housing bond. Rocha raised funds for City Council candidates Sergio Jimenez and Helen Chapman.

Liccardo on Aug. 18 reported soliciting $25,000 from Seth Bland, the vice president of development at Federal Realty, to support Measure B. One month later, Bland stood in front of the council to ask for leeway in repurposing the historic Century 21 movie theater dome on Winchester Boulevard.

The dome, which Liccardo in 2014 supported designating as a historic landmark, sits on the land Federal Realty wants to develop into a commercial and office development called Santana West.

“I have a windowless structure that at this moment in time, the world is not demanding,” Bland told the council at its Sept. 20 meeting. Despite voting to preserve the building two years ago, Liccardo was among the council majority who agreed to give Bland flexibility in reusing it — even stripping it down to its metal frames.

Liccardo says he hasn’t changed his mind on preserving the dome, and said he had cautioned in 2014 that the conversation about Century 21 isn’t over and historic structures can be altered.

Liccardo’s disclosure report shows another developer, Trammell Crow Co., gave $10,000 on Sept. 20 to support Measure B. Two weeks later, the City Council voted to extend an incentive to suspend certain taxes to accommodate the developer’s high-rise office tower near the Diridon transit station.

KT Urban, which gave $9,750, is in the process of developing two residential towers at the old Greyhound station; Brian Bumb, who gave $25,000, is planning to expand the Berryessa Flea Market and the Bay 101 Casino; and Dennis Fong, who gave $5,000, is proposing a three-story office complex at the Tropicana Shopping Center.

Peralez solicited $10,000 from a medical marijuana shop — Buddy’s Cannabis — for Measure A and the Latino Leadership Alliance.

One month after Buddy’s Cannabis split $5,000 for Measure A and Measure F, Peralez was among a council majority who voted to legalize medical pot deliveries, allow multiple grow sites and explore allowing medical cannabis distributors, manufacturers and testing labs in San Jose — a move generally supported by the medical marijuana industry.

Peralez agreed the timing “doesn’t look good,” but said it’s coincidental. This is the only time he’s solicited funds, the first-term councilman said, and none of the donors asked for anything in return.

“I hope people realize that’s not why I would go out and solicit contributions,” Peralez said. “It definitely was coincidental.”

Another contribution is $25,000 from the San Francisco 49ers for Measure F — reported on Liccardo’s disclosure form — one month after San Jose sued Santa Clara over a large development project. A team spokesman said it regularly supports measures that are good for the region.

“This is not out of the ordinary,” said Bob Lange, the team’s vice president of communications. “As a regional team, there are a lot of things we support because it’s in the best interest of our region.”

The 49ers also gave $500 to Councilman Ash Kalra for an Indian flag-raising event, the disclosure form shows.

Ramona Giwargis is the San Jose City Hall reporter at The Mercury News. After stints in Eureka, Salinas and Merced, Giwargis returned to San Jose to cover local government and politics for her hometown newspaper. Giwargis won numerous awards for investigative journalism and is a graduate of San Jose State University.

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